This fall’s two new exhibits at the Science Museum showcase the spookier side of the invertebrate world. Glow explores the fascinating topic of bioluminescence-that is, how creatures like fireflies and jellyfish have the ability to produce their own light. This whole glowing thing is useful in mating rituals, prey attraction, and cancer research (by humans, not jellyfish), but given how ugly some bioluminescent fish are, you have to wonder if they wouldn’t be better off under cover of darkness. The museum’s other new exhibit is even creepier and crawlier, delving into the grisly police work that is forensic entomology. Inspired by the hit TV show, but without all the bad one-liners, CSI looks at how scientists use corpse-loving insects to establish crucial information about suspicious deaths. A morbid discipline, to be sure, but important. Lawyers aren’t the only lower life forms working to bring criminals to justice.
Science Museum, 120 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, (651) 221-9444, www.smm.org
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